Estero has the chance to buy 66 historic riverfront acres in the heart of the formerly rural south Lee County village.

Village Partners LLC., which owns the land, has offered it to the village for $36 million. The three parcels, on the northeast corner of U.S. 41 and Corkscrew Road, surround the nonprofit Happehatchee Center and include the old College of Life building.

Village Partners requested a response by July 7. The Village Council hasn't yet discussed the potential buy.

Once upon a time, the land belonged to the Koreshans, a pioneering Victorian-era Utopian sect that settled in Estero to build the new Jerusalem. The group's remnant, the nonprofit College of Life Foundation, sold it (and two additional parcels) to Village Partners for $11.4 million in 2007.

Hedwig Michel, the last living member of the unity, built a modern, nautilus-shaped headquarters there in 1979. For a time, the building housed the sect's archives and functioned as a museum, but it's now in disrepair and the Koreshan artifacts and papers have been distributed to universities and the state-owned historic site across the street.

Koreshan Unity president Hedwig Michel with a model of the new headquarters in 1973. The building was finished in 1979.(Photo: Florida State archives/Special to The News-Press)

Before the economy crashed, Village Partners had intended to develop an elaborate community center, complete with homes, retail, green space and cultural offerings. Now, says the LLC's representative, Collier County commissioner and attorney Andy Solis, it hopes that by selling the land to the village, that vision may one day be realized.

"Village Partners (feels they) have an obligation to do things responsibly and I think that's why they're looking to offer this to the village as opposed to developing it themselves," Solis said.

"They would like to see a village center there. That was their dream to begin with ... we've attended a lot of the village meetings and seen the results of the community surveys. Preservation, access to the river and creating a walkable town center is always what comes up," Solis said, "so we're trying to honor that."

Some residents are thrilled by the prospect of the site belonging to the village

“The land, the heritage — it’s priceless. The village of Estero started near that river. It’s like reclaiming the heart of the village," said Genelle Grant, Happehatchee's board president.

Patty Whitehead, a resident of Estero who serves on the Design Review Board, said she wants to ensure the land stays out of the hands of commercial entities.

“The old growth value of the trees and the history on the land is invaluable,” Whitehead said. “There’s probably a lot of historical artifacts on the property. The property has value at several levels and at multiple aspects.”

Though the price point is high above Estero’s annual budget, about $12 million, Grant said the property is worth whatever cost.

“I think a lot of people will (support the purchase),” she said. “A lot of people move around here because of the beautiful nature."